Billy McKinney’s hustle helps Thunder take 3 of 4 from Fisher Cats

The Thunder’s Abiatal Avelino, left, forces New Hampshire’s Richard Urena at second base and throws to first to complete a double play.
Gregg Slaboda — Trentonian Photo

Trenton >> Billy McKinney never stopped running.

His hustle turned out to be the difference for the Thunder in a 5-4 victory over New Hampshire on Thursday morning that clinched the four-game series and secured a 5-2 homestand.

McKinney dashed home with what ended up being the winning run from first on a crazy play in the fourth inning in which three Thunder runs scored on a grounder to second.

With bases loaded and one out, New Hampshire’s Tim Lopes made a terrific diving stop on Devyn Bolasky’s sharply-struck grounder, but that’s when things, well, turned a little wild.

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Lopes attempted to shovel the ball off to the shortstop to begin what would have been a highlight-reel double play, only his toss was nowhere near the base. With Zack Zehner chugging around third, Gunnar Heidt scooped up the errant flick, but the Fisher Cats’ third baseman fired his throw to the backstop.

McKinney kept running.

“I was looking at the situation and saw both the pitcher and catcher go for the ball, so I saw home plate unoccupied and they would have to make a hell of a play to get me,” McKinney said. “With the way they were throwing it around at that point, I wanted to make something happen.”

It was exactly the kind of aggressive play manager Bobby Mitchell wants his players to make.

“McKinney did a good job hustling,” the skipper said. “He pressed the envelope like we talk about and scored. It turned out to be a huge run.”

McKinney, who came over from the Cubs along with Gleyber Torres and Rashad Crawford in the Aroldis Chapman deal, had his best game of the young season. The 22-year-old Texan was 3-for-3 and reached base in all four of his plate appearances.

“I try to be confident every day,” said McKinney after raising his average to .222. “I don’t try to get too high or too low. I just try and be consistent. I’m glad the ball dropped for me today, and I hope to just hit it hard.”

Even with McKinney’s hustle play giving the Thunder a 5-1 lead, they still had to hang on through a nervy ninth when the Fisher Cats took advantage of an error by second baseman Abiatal Avelino and pushed across a pair of runs before Cale Coshow got Lopes to ground out with the tying and go-ahead runs on base.

Coshow nailed down his fourth save in five opportunities. He’s successfully closed four straight since coughing up the lead in his first chance.

“It was a big test for him. It really was,” Mitchell said. “He had that bloop to start the inning, then he settled in and things started to snowball a little bit and the error really added the pressure. It was first and second one out instead of man on second two outs. I thought he handled it pretty well, but you could see the anxiety start to set in.

“That’s what he’s working on. It’s not going to be perfect yet, but the thing about it, the last hitter, he threw strikes. He went to 3-2, but last year, the ball would have been up high and a ball, and I think this year he’s starting to realize he doesn’t have to throw it 150 miles-per-hour to get people out.”

Yefrey Ramirez improved to 2-0 with six solid innings. The 23-year-old loaded the bases without recording an out in the sixth, but danced out of trouble by inducing a 6-4-3 double play after just a lone run came across.

“I was so happy to get out of that inning with just one run because it was bases loaded and nobody (out),” Mitchell said. “Just to keep our lead at 5-2 instead of otherwise, I thought that him getting out of that was huge.”

That lead, of course, was built through a combination of good fortune and some old-fashioned hustle.

“It varies on the situation of the game,” McKinney said., “but in that situation, I did want to be aggressive and get things rolling.”

NOTES >> Mike Ford had his 11-game hitting streak snapped after going 0-for-3, although he did walk and knocked in a first-inning run with a fielder’s choice groundout. ... The Thunder improved to 8-5, while the Fisher Cats fell to 6-7. ... Next up is a six-game road trip, beginning Friday night in Portland. Nestor Cortes is the Thunder’s scheduled starter.

About the Author

Kyle Franko covers college and high school sports at the Trentonian. He is a Rutgers grad, avid football -- the European variety -- fan and part-time pick-up basketball player. Reach the author at kfranko@trentonian.com
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